You know......I'm kinda surprised (especially since there are so many military people on this board) that this story hasn't been brought up yet........

SHERMAN, Texas - The father of a U.S. soldier accused of killing five fellow troops in Iraq said his son "forfeited his life" but the military bears some responsibility for the rampage.

Wilburn Russell said Tuesday that 44-year-old Army Sgt. John M. Russell wasn't typically a violent person, but counselors "broke" him before gunfire erupted in a military stress center Monday in Baghdad.

"John has forfeited his life. Apparently, he said (to his wife), 'My life is over. To hell with it. I'm going to get even with 'em,'" said the elder Russell, 73.

His father said the younger Russell, an electronics technician, was at the stress center to transfer out of active duty. He said his son was undergoing stressful mental tests that he didn't understand were merely tests, "so they broke him."

"I hate what that boy did," said the elder Russell, speaking in front of the two-story house his son was buying with his German wife in a new subdivision. "We're sorry for the families, too. It shouldn't have happened."

Excerpts of his military record, obtained by The Associated Press, show Sgt. Russell previously did two one-year tours of duty in Iraq, one starting in April 2003 and another in November 2005. The stress of repeat and extended tours is considered a main contributor to mental health problems among troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Sgt. Russell, who is facing charges of murder and aggravated assault, was about six weeks from the end of his third tour of duty in Iraq, his father said. Wilburn Russell said his son e-mailed his wife in Germany early this month, telling her officers threatened him during what he called the two worst days of his life.

You know......I'm kinda surprised (especially since there are so many military people on this board) that this story hasn't been brought up yet........

SHERMAN, Texas - The father of a U.S. soldier accused of killing five fellow troops in Iraq said his son "forfeited his life" but the military bears some responsibility for the rampage.

Wilburn Russell said Tuesday that 44-year-old Army Sgt. John M. Russell wasn't typically a violent person, but counselors "broke" him before gunfire erupted in a military stress center Monday in Baghdad.

"John has forfeited his life. Apparently, he said (to his wife), 'My life is over. To hell with it. I'm going to get even with 'em,'" said the elder Russell, 73.

His father said the younger Russell, an electronics technician, was at the stress center to transfer out of active duty. He said his son was undergoing stressful mental tests that he didn't understand were merely tests, "so they broke him."

"I hate what that boy did," said the elder Russell, speaking in front of the two-story house his son was buying with his German wife in a new subdivision. "We're sorry for the families, too. It shouldn't have happened."

Excerpts of his military record, obtained by The Associated Press, show Sgt. Russell previously did two one-year tours of duty in Iraq, one starting in April 2003 and another in November 2005. The stress of repeat and extended tours is considered a main contributor to mental health problems among troops serving in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Sgt. Russell, who is facing charges of murder and aggravated assault, was about six weeks from the end of his third tour of duty in Iraq, his father said. Wilburn Russell said his son e-mailed his wife in Germany early this month, telling her officers threatened him during what he called the two worst days of his life.

Frankly I did not post it because we do have some weirdo posters on here who would either politicize it or put some unneeded jabs at the military...

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you are probably right!
I do think they need to be monitoring these soldiers and their mental well being alittle closer but that is all I am going to say.
It is very tragic and it is easy to say it could have been prevented after the fact.

no joints in mri's.....need the reflexes etc...cant be stone kicking shit for the hell of it....

i read it....what is there to say...i keep saying the armed forces lowering entrance exams in one of the main reason but this man was not new....at 44 ...he knew the game....you either bang out at 4....or try your best to do 20...

i do hope "they" are not trying to break people but then remember the story of the recruiters and all...sgt i am not saying anything negative about a man/woman wearing an american or allied uniform....i am just saying we have to explore the reasons shit happens...even when we already know...shit just happens....the fates and muses were not kind

This sort of thing really isn't surprising. Training people to go against their instinct not to kill, and repeatedly sending them into hostile areas where they have to kill and their friends are being killed would take a toll on anybody's psyche. It's why the suicide rate in the military is so high, often outstripping combat deaths. This situation is a tragedy for all involved.

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